Chronicle of a Bourgeois of Valenciennes

Récits d’un bourgeois de Valenciennes aka The Chronicle of a Bourgeois of Valenciennes is a vivid 14th-century vernacular chronicle written by an anonymous urban chronicler from Valenciennes in the County of Hainaut. It survives in a manuscript that describes local and regional history from about 1253 to 1366, blending chronology, narrative episodes, and eyewitness-style accounts of political, military, and social events in medieval France, Flanders, and the Low Countries. The work begins with a chronological framework of events affecting Valenciennes and its region under rulers such as King Philip VI of France and the shifting allegiances of local nobility. It includes accounts of conflicts, sieges, diplomatic manoeuvres, and the impact of broader struggles like the Hundred Years’ War on urban life in Hainaut. Written from the perspective of a burgher (bourgeois) rather than a monastery or royal court, the chronicle offers a rare lay viewpoint on high politics and warfare, reflecting how merchants, townspeople, and civic institutions experienced the turbulence of the 13th and 14th centuries. Its narrative style combines straightforward reporting of events with moral and civic observations, making it a valuable source for readers interested in medieval urban society, regional politics, and the lived experience of war and governance in pre-modern Europe.

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Biography of George Hayter 1792-1871

George Hayter is in Painters.

1838 Coronation of Queen Victoria

1840 Wedding of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert

On 17th December 1792 George Hayter was born to [his father] Charles Hayter [aged 31].

1817. George Hayter [aged 24]. Portrait of Antonio Canova [aged 59].

1819. George Hayter [aged 26]. Portrait of Charles Cockerell 1st Baronet [aged 63].

In 1823. George Hayter [aged 30]. The Trial of Caroline of Brunswick Queen Consort England.

In 1825. George Hayter [aged 32]. Portrait of George James Welbore Agar 1st Baron Dover [aged 27].

Around 1828. George Hayter [aged 35]. Portrait of William Cavendish 7th Duke Devonshire [aged 19].

Around 1830. George Hayter [aged 37]. Portrait of sisters Charlotte Stuart Countess Canning [aged 12] at the piano and Louisa Anne Stuart Marchioness Waterford [aged 11].

Around 1830. George Hayter [aged 37]. Portrait of Elizabeth Yorke Lady Stuart [aged 41] and her daughters Charlotte Stuart Countess Canning [aged 12] and Louisa Anne Stuart Marchioness Waterford [aged 11].

Elizabeth Yorke Lady Stuart: In 1789 she was born to Philip Yorke 3rd Earl of Hardwicke and Elizabeth Lindsay Countess Hardwicke. On 6th February 1816 Charles Stuart 1st Baron Stuart de Rothesay and she were married. She the daughter of Philip Yorke 3rd Earl of Hardwicke and Elizabeth Lindsay Countess Hardwicke. On 23rd June 1867 Elizabeth Yorke Lady Stuart died.

Around 1830. George Hayter [aged 37]. Portrait of Charles Stuart 1st Baron Stuart de Rothesay [aged 50].

Charles Stuart 1st Baron Stuart de Rothesay: On 2nd January 1779 he was born to Charles Stuart and Anne Louisa Bertie. On 6th November 1845 Charles Stuart 1st Baron Stuart de Rothesay died.

Around 1830. George Hayter [aged 37]. Portrait of William Craven 2nd Earl Craven [aged 20].

1832. George Hayter [aged 39]. Portrait of Louisa Barbara Catherine Phillips Countess Lichfield [aged 32] with two of her children Thomas George Anson 2nd Earl Lichfield [aged 6] and Harriet Frances Maria Anson Baroness Vernon [aged 4].

Louisa Barbara Catherine Phillips Countess Lichfield: In 1800 she was born to Nathaniel Phillips. On 11th February 1819 Thomas William Anson 1st Earl Lichfield and she were married. On 20th August 1879 she died in Hill Street.

1832. George Hayter [aged 39]. Portrait of John William Montagu 7th Earl Sandwich [aged 20].

1833. George Hayter [aged 40]. Portrait of Francis Baring 1st Baron Northbrook [aged 36].

Chronicle of Geoffrey le Baker of Swinbroke

Baker was a secular clerk from Swinbroke, now Swinbrook, an Oxfordshire village two miles east of Burford. His Chronicle describes the events of the period 1303-1356: Gaveston, Bannockburn, Boroughbridge, the murder of King Edward II, the Scottish Wars, Sluys, Crécy, the Black Death, Winchelsea and Poitiers. To quote Herbert Bruce 'it possesses a vigorous and characteristic style, and its value for particular events between 1303 and 1356 has been recognised by its editor and by subsequent writers'. The book provides remarkable detail about the events it describes. Baker's text has been augmented with hundreds of notes, including extracts from other contemporary chronicles, such as the Annales Londonienses, Annales Paulini, Murimuth, Lanercost, Avesbury, Guisborough and Froissart to enrich the reader's understanding. The translation takes as its source the 'Chronicon Galfridi le Baker de Swynebroke' published in 1889, edited by Edward Maunde Thompson.

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1833. George Hayter [aged 40]. Portrait of Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom [aged 13].

1833. George Hayter [aged 40]. Portrait of Henry Cecil Lowther [aged 42].

Henry Cecil Lowther: On 27th July 1790 he was born to William Lowther 1st Earl Lonsdale and Augusta Fane Countess Lonsdale at Lowther Castle Lowther. On 19th May 1817 Henry Cecil Lowther and Lucy Eleanor Sherard were married. She the daughter of Philip Sherard 5th Earl Harborough. He the son of William Lowther 1st Earl Lonsdale and Augusta Fane Countess Lonsdale. On 6th December 1867 Henry Cecil Lowther died at Barleythorpe Hall, Rutlandshire.

1834. George Hayter [aged 41]. Portrait of Philip Stanhope 5th Earl Stanhope [aged 28].

1835. George Hayter [aged 42]. Portrait of Marie Luise Victoria Saxe Coburg Gotha Duchess Kent and Strathearn [aged 48].

1835. George Hayter [aged 42]. Portrait of John Russell 6th Duke Bedford [aged 68].

On 1st December 1835 [his father] Charles Hayter [aged 74] died.

1837. George Hayter [aged 44]. Portrait of Louise Orléans Queen Consort Belgium [aged 24].

Louise Orléans Queen Consort Belgium: On 3rd April 1812 she was born. On 9th August 1830 King Leopold I of Belgium and she were married. The difference in their ages was 21 years. He the son of Francis Saxe Coburg Gotha I Duke Saxe Coburg Gotha and Augusta Reuss Duchess Saxe Coburg Gotha. On 21st July 1831 King Leopold I of Belgium was created I King Belgium. She by marriage Queen Consort Belgium. On 11th October 1850 she died.

Coronation of Queen Victoria

Around 28th June 1838. George Hayter [aged 45]. Coronation Portrait of Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom [aged 19].

Before 1840. George Hayter [aged 47]. Portrait of John Russell 1st Earl Russell [aged 47] and Henry Vassall Fox 3rd Baron Holland [aged 66].

Henry Vassall Fox 3rd Baron Holland: On 21st November 1773 he was born. On 22nd October 1840 he died.

In 1840. George Hayter [aged 47]. Portrait of Elizabeth Bingham.

Elizabeth Bingham: she was born to Richard Bingham 2nd Earl Lucan and Elizabeth Belasyse Duchess Norfolk. On 27th March 1815 George Harcourt and she were married. She the daughter of Richard Bingham 2nd Earl Lucan and Elizabeth Belasyse Duchess Norfolk. He the son of Archbishop Edward Venables-Vernon-Harcourt and Anne Leveson-Gower. They were sixth cousins. On 9th September 1838 Elizabeth Bingham died.

Wedding of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert

10th February 1840. George Hayter [aged 47]. Wedding of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert. Hayter included portraits of fifty-six of those present at the occasion and sittings took place over the next year. The Queen [aged 20] sat for him in March in her 'Bridal dress, veil, wreath & all', and Prince Albert [aged 20] also posed for his portrait several times during the following months. Hayter's family too helped out with his son, Henry, modelling the Prince's costume, while his daughter Mary posed for the Queen's arm and wearing the veil. Victoria's aunt Queen Adelaide [aged 47], however, was unwilling to co-operate and the artist had to refer to a miniature for her likeness. Hayter included himself in the painting, on the lower right, with his sketchbook and pencil.

Anne Boleyn. Her Life as told by Lancelot de Carle's 1536 Letter.

In 1536, two weeks after the execution of Anne Boleyn, her brother George and four others, Lancelot du Carle, wrote an extraordinary letter that described Anne's life, and her trial and execution, to which he was a witness. This book presents a new translation of that letter, with additional material from other contemporary sources such as Letters, Hall's and Wriothesley's Chronicles, the pamphlets of Wynkyn the Worde, the Memorial of George Constantyne, the Portuguese Letter and the Baga de Secrets, all of which are provided in Appendices.

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Before 1842. George Hayter [aged 49]. Portrait of Thomas Dalrymple Hesketh 3rd Baronet [aged 64].

Thomas Dalrymple Hesketh 3rd Baronet: On 13th January 1777 he was born to Thomas Hesketh and Jacintha Dalrymple at New York. On 30th December 1796 Robert Hesketh 2nd Baronet died. His grandson Thomas succeeded 3rd Baronet Hesketh of Rufford in Lancashire. On 1st February 1798 Thomas Dalrymple Hesketh 3rd Baronet and Sophia Hinde Lady Hesketh were married. She by marriage Lady Hesketh of Rufford in Lancashire. On 27th July 1842 Thomas Dalrymple Hesketh 3rd Baronet died. He was buried at St Mary The Virgin Church, Rufford [Map]. His son Thomas succeeded 4th Baronet Hesketh of Rufford in Lancashire. Annette Maria Bomford Lady Hesketh by marriage Lady Hesketh of Rufford in Lancashire.

Around 1844. George Hayter [aged 51]. Portrait of Charles Shaw-Lefevre 1st Viscount Eversley [aged 49].

Before 1859. George Hayter [aged 66]. Portrait of Jacob Astley 16th Baron Hastings [aged 61].

Before 1861 . George Hayter [aged 68]. Portrait of George Bridgeman 2nd Earl Bradford [aged 71].

Before 1861 . George Hayter [aged 68]. Portrait of John Campbell 1st Baron Campbell [aged 81].

John Campbell 1st Baron Campbell: On 15th September 1779 he was born. On 23rd June 1861 he died.

On 18th January 1871 George Hayter [aged 78] died.